How to Use Eggshells for Plant Fertilizer

Eggs are not only delicious and nutritious, but their shells provide excellent benefits to plants as well.  As we're beginning to prepare this year's garden, we've been saving our eggshells to make an easy fertilizer to improve the soil.  Have your veggies ever suffered from blossom end rot?  When mixed in the dirt eggshells provide a good source of calcium and help to prevent that.  You can also sprinkle them on top of the soil around your plants to create a barrier to slugs and snails.  They don't like to crawl over the sharp edges of the shells.             

How to Use Eggshells as a Garden Fertilizer:

Instead of throwing your eggshells away, save them.  Rinse and dry them to remove any egg residue.  I simply used an old egg carton as a drying rack, and dumped them into another storage container once they've dried each day.  When you have a good amount (you probably see 10 dozen shells in the picture above), and you're ready for the next step, microwave them for two minutes to kill an possible bacteria like salmonella.  Place the shells into a food processor and grind until a powder forms, about 30-60 seconds.  You want pieces as small as in the picture below.  Be careful.  This process gets very dusty.  Try not to breathe in the eggshell dust.  Finally, generously sprinkle the powdered shells into your garden soil, mixing them into the top layer, just before planting your veggies.  That's all there is to it!  And guess what?  It was kind of free.